IN 2005-06 the Centre launched the Jawaharlal Nehru National Urban Renewal Mission (JNNURM) and Panaji was one of the 63 cities chosen for implementation of the scheme.
Five years have passed and the Corporation of the City of Panaji is still making plans to avail of the Rs 60 crore allotted to it under JNNURM. In contrast, the Kadamba Transport Corporation (KTC) has succeeded, albeit partially. Initially the KTC made use of the allocations to purchase about 30 buses. The KTC got around the stringent criteria laid down under the scheme by convincing the Centre that the buses would be used to service routes that originate in Panaji. The Centre promptly released ` 3.5 crore in 2009 and new buses joined the fleet. This did not set milestones in urban renewal, but it did wonders for the KTC’s bottom line which is always showing signs of going into free fall. Simultaneously a proposal was also made for another ` 3.75 crore for purchase of 20 low-floor buses.
However, on January 12, 2009 the JNNURM director, Mr P K Srivastava wrote to the chief secretaries of all the states that financing for buses under the scheme would be restricted only to improving inter-city transport or creating of a Bus Rapid Transit System (BRTS). This effectively put paid to KTC plans because it never had any intention of either creating a BRTS or using the buses to ferry commuters within the city of Panaji. The state government tried hard to convince the Centre that Goa is a very small state and the total population is much less than that of other cities. The idea was to somehow get the Centre to release funds for purposes other than urban renewal. As time passed it became apparent that the state had run into a brick wall. The choices before the government was to either scrap the decision to buy low-floor buses or do it with its own money. On Wednesday, the KTC chairperson, Mr Deepak Dhavalikar announced that the state had decided to foot the bill ( ` 3.75 crore) and the buses would hit the roads in a few weeks.
Goan commuters certainly deserve better public transport. Having to put up with unruly private operators, rude conductors, dilapidated buses (KTC included) and overcrowded buses is stressful, to say the least. This state of affairs has been going on for decades with the government showing little or no interest in improving the situation. Consequently, it is commuters who face the brunt. We are not saying that 20 low-floor buses will bring about a sea of change in public transport because the KTC is still a minor player in the public transport sector. As on March 31, 2009 there were 7,644 buses and mini-buses registered with the transport department, of which only 390 were owned by the KTC. Which means the bulk of the vehicles are in the private sector where, apart from periodic fare revisions, reforms never really take place. So how will 20 buses make a difference? The answer lies in the monopoly that the KTC enjoys on the routes linking Panaji with Margao and Mormugao which were nationalised more than a decade ago. These are perhaps the busiest routes in the state, after the Mapusa-Panaji link. By deploying the low-floor buses, with a premium fare, the KTC will be giving commuters a better option. Some years back the KTC introduced shuttle service on these routes and it was an instant hit with commuters who were willing to put up with long queues to get a seat. (These buses, though, are in dire need of a luggage cabin which will stop the practice of passengers carrying huge bags into the seating area.) So there is every reason to believe that low-floor buses, which worked for Delhi, will also work for Goa. But the question that lingers is: how long these buses will remain
in tip-top condition?
